New Delhi, Jan. 16 -- Iran's current turmoil is often narrated as a story of domestic collapse, economic distress, governance deficits and popular unrest rooted in authoritarian rule. These realities are undeniable and have imposed severe costs on ordinary Iranians. Inflation, unemployment, currency collapse and violent repression of dissent have created conditions of sustained social exhaustion. Yet when this framing is presented in isolation, it obscures a deeper and more unsettling truth: Iran's political and economic trajectory has, for decades, been shaped by systematic external intervention. From sanctions and diplomatic isolation to covert operations and persistent threats of force, Iran has been subjected to one of the longest-run...